Orel, your three ways to sharpen product thinking are amazing! You and Karo are two product builders who will be changing the world with products for a long time
Thanks Karo and Orel for this excellent post. I love how you have approached the use of AI with genuine nuance, and I agree that there is a real danger that overuse can cloud our judgement. But once we recognise this danger, I think there is also an opportunity to use AI to take on the personas of different audiences / clients and then use this to develop counter-arguments in real-time and hopefully improve our critical thinking and judgement in the process. Thanks again for the great read! 🙏
The moment you stop feeling the weight of a feature, you stop thinking like a product builder. AI gives us speed, but it’s the pause before “should I ship this” that separates solid products from messy ones.
Hey Karo, great read as always. This product thinking reminds me of when I tried to 'build' my own Pilates rouține – sometimes the simple moves are the killer ones. Ego check!
The speed AI provides feels like a superpower, but it definitely necessitates a more deliberate approach to product decisions. The cost is no longer time/difficulty of execution, but the systemic cost of a bad decision.
That's a profound shift in how we approach building.
The emphasis on preserving friction as a tool for sharpening product judgment really resonates. It's a reminder that speed shouldn’t come at the cost of thoughtful decision-making.
With my first project, I went eagerly straight into building everything. Because of the high you get from the speed! It was a mess, and a lot of tokens were burnt unnecessarily.
Now I spend more time thinking and mapping than I spend building a feature in, and it's clean and significantly more efficient.
Yes – the one feature AI can’t replace is that gut-level product instinct. The clever bit here is how you’ve reframed friction as a training ground, not a blocker. That mental cost-benefit check before shipping? It’s the bit AI skips – and it’s where long-term product sense is forged.
Orel, your three ways to sharpen product thinking are amazing! You and Karo are two product builders who will be changing the world with products for a long time
Thank you for reading Joel 🤗
Very good practice advice and tips. Thank you
Thank you so much for reading Andrew🤗
Thanks Karo and Orel for this excellent post. I love how you have approached the use of AI with genuine nuance, and I agree that there is a real danger that overuse can cloud our judgement. But once we recognise this danger, I think there is also an opportunity to use AI to take on the personas of different audiences / clients and then use this to develop counter-arguments in real-time and hopefully improve our critical thinking and judgement in the process. Thanks again for the great read! 🙏
Thank you Sam!
I appreciate your thoughtful comments :)
Thank you so much for reading Sam!
Haha I loved the way you used the word “cloud” in here :)
Thank you so much for the restack @Elena Calvillo 🤗
Thanks for sharing my tool! :) This is a great collaboration! 👏
❤️
Thank you, Karo, for sharing a link to my article. Your LinkSwap tool is awesome!
Karo, this makes a lot of sense.
Right when you think the PTRs are finally cleared after another sprint, something still feels off.
When teams lean too much on AI, the judgment side gets soft fast. People don’t notice it until decisions start wobbling like a loose wisdom tooth.
Then the AI workslop creeps in and becomes normal.
Where do you see that drift show up first in product work?
Planning? Priorities? Tradeoffs?
Thanks for your time.
Have an absolutely wonderful weekend.
Thank you, have a wonderful weekend too Myles!
I’ve felt that rush to build fast with AI and then pause, realizing I skipped thinking through the impact
My Accountability Partner helps me create that pause consistently, so every feature or post is intentional
How do you stay deliberate when speed tempts you to skip reflection?
Interesting question.
What I started doing is asking ChatGPT to question me when I want to add a new feature.
I'll have a 10-15 minutes chat and then end up with conclusions.
I’m learning that aswell
Using AI to question the loopholes in my systems
Couldn’t agree more @karo and @orel.
The moment you stop feeling the weight of a feature, you stop thinking like a product builder. AI gives us speed, but it’s the pause before “should I ship this” that separates solid products from messy ones.
Thank you Nitin, for taking the time to read and comment!
Hey Karo, great read as always. This product thinking reminds me of when I tried to 'build' my own Pilates rouține – sometimes the simple moves are the killer ones. Ego check!
The speed AI provides feels like a superpower, but it definitely necessitates a more deliberate approach to product decisions. The cost is no longer time/difficulty of execution, but the systemic cost of a bad decision.
That's a profound shift in how we approach building.
The emphasis on preserving friction as a tool for sharpening product judgment really resonates. It's a reminder that speed shouldn’t come at the cost of thoughtful decision-making.
Oh, I recognize what you're talking about.
With my first project, I went eagerly straight into building everything. Because of the high you get from the speed! It was a mess, and a lot of tokens were burnt unnecessarily.
Now I spend more time thinking and mapping than I spend building a feature in, and it's clean and significantly more efficient.
Good for you Klara! That's the way to go.
Certainly can't replace you Karo ! 🌟
Hahah, you’re too kind Chris!
Friction is where real judgment lives.
Yes – the one feature AI can’t replace is that gut-level product instinct. The clever bit here is how you’ve reframed friction as a training ground, not a blocker. That mental cost-benefit check before shipping? It’s the bit AI skips – and it’s where long-term product sense is forged.
Thank you for reading Mel 🤗